Porto Santo Line has expressed difficulties in securing European funding to replace the Lobo Marinho ferry, citing regulations that mandate zero carbon emissions.
Carlos Perdigão Santos, the company's executive administrator, urged MEPs to consider the specific needs of island regions when applying sustainability and energy transition rules. The company is seeking a more environmentally and fuel-efficient vessel, but a fully electric solution is deemed unfeasible due to technological limitations and the need for multiple daily trips and mainland maintenance.
Perdigão Santos also highlighted the ferry's importance as an alternative to the airport and a contingency measure, advocating for new environmental rules to be adapted to the reality of ultra-peripheral regions to avoid burdening smaller operations with significant investments.
